Groundhog Day Marathon 2021

Short review

We’ve all heard of Punxsutawney Phil, the little furry guy in Pennsylvania who comes out, sees his shadow, and declares six more weeks of winter. Then there’s Augustus T. Groundhog, better known as Grand Rapids Gus. He’s Phil’s much more interesting cousin. Unlike Phil, who it seems can only see shadows, Gus has much better eyesight and can look at a calendar on February 2 and know that spring doesn’t start for six weeks. Gus suggested that instead of lamenting over six more weeks of winter, we should EMBRACE the cold and snow and do something fun. And so, the Groundhog Day Marathon was born.

Virtual Option
If you still don't find yourself comfortable running in person, sign up anyway. We'll mail you your race packet after race day. You can report your time (you won't be in the age group results). When you're registering, there's a question if you want to do it as a VIRTUAL EVENT. Say yes. In addition to your regular gear, you'll get 20% off for the 2022 Groundhog Day Marathon. (If you already signed up and want to switch to virtual, email Don and let him know.) THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE BEFORE 4PM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5. 

2021 COVID-19 STUFF - This year we will not be putting up a tent, so dress warmly and have extra stuff to wear before and after the race. Hopefully the weather will be like 2020 rather than 2019. You'll need to wear masks before the race starts and after you're done when you're around people. It's likely we'll be doing a "rolling start" so you're not all bunched up. 

EARLY START--Because we want to be more socially distanced, we're opening the start line at 7:00 am. If you're one of our "velocity challenged" runners, please start as close to 7:00 as possible. You can start any time between 7:00 and 8:00. If you're a competitive runners (i.e. somebody could win this thing) please start at 8:00 with the fast people. 

NOTE--IF THE WHOLE STATE OF MICHIGAN IS IN A STATE OF EMERGENCY AND NOTHING IS ALLOWED TO HAPPEN ANYWHERE, WE WILL POSTPONE THE 9TH ANNUAL GROUNDHOG DAY MARATHON TO 2022.

The Basics
It’s a winter running event, outside Grand Rapids Michigan.  YES! THERE WILL PROBABLY BE LOTS OF SNOW ON THE COURSE.

The Friday and Saturday closest to Groundhog Day February. In 2021, it's February 5-6.

It’s more fun than you should have with your clothes on.

Our Events
Marathon:
Like the movie, you’ll feel like you’re repeating the same day over and over. A beautiful, snowy (we hope), approximately 4.4 mile course. Splits every 1/6th of a marathon. 8:00 a.m. Saturday.  500 Runner limit combined for full and half marathons
Half Marathon:
For those of you who couldn’t stay awake through the whole movie. Only three times around.
Moonlight 1/6 Marathon on Groundhog Eve:
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 1/6 MARATHON! Hey, we’re going to be set up anyway, no sense in just long-distance people having all the fun.  6:30 p.m. Friday. 300 Runner limit.

Course
Ever see the movie?  The course will give you the opportunity to relive the same day several times.  A total of 6 loops of approximately 4.4 miles on a CERTIFIED course (Yes!  You can qualify for Boston!) will have you feeling just a little case of deja vu.  Two aid stations plus the finish line area.  Don’t plan on the course being free of snow.  It’s paved, which means no underlying rocks and roots, but that’s about all we’re promising.

Hotels & Travel. 
Our airport is GRR. Look for hotels HERE

Contacts:
(Note--if you write with a question that's very plainly stated on the page, the email may get a low priority)

Race Director: Don Kern  donkern1@gmail.com  616 293 3145
Associate Race Director: TJ Suchocki  admin@fastbooth.com  616 318 5411
Volunteer Coordinator: Stephanie Cornwell, happy.steph.1976@gmail.com 
Mailing Address:  1170 Oakburn Ave SE  Grand Rapids, MI 49546